So we’ve discussed goal and motivation. Next up is everybody’s favorite: conflict. Conflict is the unmovable object meeting the unstoppable force. In the case of romance novels it’s a hero and a hero who really don’t want to fall in love fighting that very emotion. Since it’s so vital to plot a lot of authors, particularly new authors, have trouble with it. They don’t want to put their characters through hell, don’t want them to make bad decisions. Let me tell you, Harry Potter would not be the phenomenon it is if Harry had never been attacked by Voldemort, or been brought up by his awful aunt and uncle, or sent off to Hogwart’s to face the challenges there. It is only because of his triumph over adversity that Harry Potter zapped his way into our hearts.

Conflict
• Both external and internal is both internal and external, just like goal and motivation. Internal is inside the character (emotion) – what they want vs what they must do. What they will gain or lose by making a choice. If they aren’t trying to avoid a situation, there is no conflict. Your hero who wants love, but never had it growing up? He must put himself out there to be loved and that’s not easy when you expect to have your heart stepped on. External is the outside problem standing between what the character and his/her goals. It is anything you can see, hear, touch, smell, etc. Tangible while the internal is intangible. External is something that the character can deal with but not necessarily resolve. Goals cannot be abandoned in the face of this obstacle. Your heroine wants to save the family farm because it is her all she has left of her parents. The hero is trying to foreclose on her mortgage.

• A good guideline for new authors is this: your hero (or heroine) wants something for a reason. Make the other character the reason they can’t have it. Or, the only character who can give it to them.

• Conflict is friction. Opposition. It does not mean that your characters have to fight all the time. That’s just annoying. There is nothing sexier than two people who want each other despite having conflicting goals. Eventually they’re going to want to work out the conflict so they can be together. They can’t do that if they’re fighting all the time — and no one will believe their happily ever after.

• Like goal and motivation, conflict can change through out the book. One thing that makes conflict different however, is that conflict escalates during the plot. Conflict is what drives your plot. That big black moment? That’s conflict. So whatever your conflict is, make sure you can sustain it throughout the story.

• Conflict is what keeps the reader guessing. In my book Be Mine Tonight, I’ve been told I did a great job of this, though I couldn’t tell you how. In it the hero is sitting by the heroine’s bed watching her die. He has the power to save her, but his own internal conflict keeps him from acting and she fades into darkness. Does he save her? I’m not telling — no spoilers! lol. But we all know that to be a romance there has to be a happy ending, and I was amazed at how many readers have told me they believed the heroine was dead and gone. That’s conflict. It’s also a great fluke, but I’m more than happy to take credit.

• Misunderstanding is *not* conflict. If your conflict can be solved by the hero and heroine having a conversation then you do not have conflict. Take the secret baby plot. All the woman has to do is say, “I had your baby” or “I’m pregnant.” Works in real life. So why doesn’t she? If she’s afraid he’ll take the baby from her you’d better back that up with making him the kind of man who would do just that. Good luck making him hero material as well.

• Conflict is what forces your characters to grow and change. By overcoming obstacles they become better people. Unless of course, they’re the villian, in which case being constantly defeated may make he/she a worse person. Since conflict propels your plot, you can say that it also propels your character arc. Everything he faced made Luke Skywalker a different person. He grew, became a stronger Jedi, learned to control his anger and impulsive behavior. At least one of your characters (usually the hero) should be significantly altered by the end of the book. His life is fuller, has more meaning. He has realized what is important, and that’s all because of the conflicts he faced in winning the heroine’s heart.

That wraps up Craft 101-Goal, Motivation and Conflict. Any thoughts or questions? Any great examples of GMC you’d like to share from favorite books or movies? This is where I’ll plug Debra Dixon’s book “GMC: Goal, Motivation and Conflict, the building blocks of good fiction” and tell you to get a copy if you don’t already have one. It really does make sense of the whole process.

It’s after midnight, my book is coming out (buy it! lol) and I’m brain dead. Please excuse any spelling errors. I couldn’t find the spell check…